Admiral Zheng He and Southeast Asia

4. Chinese Element in the Islamization of Southeast Asia: A Study of the Story of Njai Gede Pinatih, the Great Lady of Gresik

Chapter฀4 CHINESE฀ELEMENT฀IN฀ THE฀ISLAMIZATION฀OF฀ SOUTHEAST฀ASIA A฀Study฀of฀the฀Story฀of฀Njai฀Gede฀ Pinatih,฀the฀Great฀Lady฀of฀Gresik Tan฀Yeok฀Seong SHIH฀TA฀NIANG฀TZI฀PI฀NA฀TI,฀฀ THE฀GREAT฀LADY฀OF฀GRESIK In early 1949 when I was investigating some reproductions of the Lih Tai Pao Ann, 歷代寶案 the Dynasty Documentary Records of Ryukyu, I happened to come across a peculiar and interesting name written in these characters: Shih Ta Niang Tzi Pi Na Ti 施大娘子 俾那智. It is the name of a grand old lady living in Palembang in the Kingdom of Sri Vijaya. According to the records mentioned above, she was a member of the family of Shih Chin Ching, the Pacifier of Kukang 施進卿歸港宣慰使 installed by Cheng Ho during his first voyage to the Western Ocean in 1405. Was there 58 Reprinted from Tan Yeok Seong, “Chinese Element in the Islamisation of Southeast Asia: A Study of the Story of Njai Gede Pinatih, the Great Lady of Gresik”, in Collected Writings from the Ya-Yin Studio, Vol. 3, pp. 109–17 (South Seas Society, 1983), by permission of the publisher. Chinese฀Element฀in฀the฀Islamization฀of฀Southeast฀Asia฀ 59 any one who had heard of this name or was any mention made of it in Chinese records? I searched in vain. One night, as I was turning over the pages of the voluminous works of Sir Stamford Raffles’ History of Java, a name flashed before my eyes; Niai Gedi Pinateh. At last, I had found her. Niai Gedi Pinateh, variously written as Njai Gede Panate (Veth), Njai Gede Pinatih (Aboebakar) and Nji Ageng Pinatih (Tomb stone) etc., stands for the Grand Old Lady, Pinatih in English. It is a perfect Malay rendering of the Chinese Shih Ta Niang Tzi Pi Na Ti. There could be no better. Raffles found in Javanese records the story of this great lady, which though highly coloured, is nevertheless basically true. I quote: Maulana Ishak, otherwise called Maulana Alul Islam Pasi Malacca, a celebrated Pandita, who had given himself up to penance and mortification, having heard that there was at Ampel, on Java, a prince who was busily employed in propagating the Mohamedan religion, and that many persons, through his means, had embraced the faith, went over and assisted Sunan Makdum in the work of conversion: and having received his sanction to go to Balambangan, for the purpose of teaching the Mohamedan religion, they embarked in a prahu, and set out on the sacred mission. It happened that at this time the chief of Balambagan was greatly distressed on account of his daughter, who was very sick, and whose malady would not yield to the power of medicine. One night a voice from heaven told him, that if he would have his daughter speedily recover he must send her to Gunung Patukang’an, where there would be found a Pandita from Sabrang, who would cure her, and afterwards become her husband. A storm arising, the prahus, in which Maulana Ishak had embarked was driven close to the foot of Gunung Patukang’an, 60฀ Tan฀Yeok฀Seong and he landed there, when the Chief, having sent his daughter to the mountain, directed that the Pandita might be conveyed thither, in order that the prophecy might be fulfilled. Maulana Ishak first objected to undertake the cure, on the plea that he was not skilled in medicine, but at last agreed to comply, on condition that the chief would embrace the Mohamedan religion if he were successful. To this the latter consented, on which Ishak, addressing the prince, said, ‘I am not a person skilled in medicine, neither do I know how to administer it, but if your daughter would be well she has now only to wish herself so’. The princess immediately recovered. The prince afterwards bestowed upon the Pandita his daughter in marriage, and she soon acquired a thorough knowledge of the tenets of Mohamedanism. On one occasion, when the prince was sitting in the hall of audience before all his people, the Pandita went up to him and reminded him of his promise to become a Mohamedan, adding that he was ready to instruct him in the doctrine of that system. On this the prince became angry, and told him in haughty terms that he would never change his religion. No sooner had he spoken than his mouth was distorted. At this...